Morning journal and courier., 1887-09-15
BGLD SMUGGLING.
Royal Yachtsmen EndcavOrfng to Dc.
 fraud the Customs

fraud the Customs.
 Two recent cases illustrate the efforts per petually made to hoodwink the harassed and ! misgiving English customs officer, says the London Telegraph. The smart post boat be- ! longing to the royal yacht Victoria and Al ! bert makes bravely for Ventnor, the oars \ flashing and the crew bending and rising \ with true man -of-war uniformity and grace. ! But scarcely hes she arrived when party of | customs officers bounce upon her, overhaul her and seize forty pounds of tobacco and ci- gars. It is scarcely conceivable that snug gling could be carried to higher pitch of defiance than this The goods were wrapped up in parcels and the boatswain and the boats crew stated that they were intended for the parcels lost. The royal yachtsmen were marched to the custom house and after ward conveyed to the Victoria and Albert and delivered up to Captain Fullerton, who, it is stated, will surrender them for trial on the return from the voyage to Flushing. It is worth noting that the officers who seized the contraband goods in the post boat had been sent specially from London. It is true that in this case no particular expertness was exhibited. It was perhaps deemed that it was impossible but that the revenue should be safe under the shadow of the royal stand ard But it is clear that to the customs man even Csesar's wife is not above suspicion.
 
 at Dover recently. A salesman and q dealer were charged with smuggling nine pounds of tobacco and large quantity of cigars. The salesman consigned to the dealer box that was described in the way bill containing perishable fish. The box was to be left till called for. The consignee perhaps forgot all about it; at all events it lay long enough at the railway station to cause the authorities to give instructions for 1t to be opened and the contents sold. Instead of being full of fish, the box was found to be loaded with contraband cigars and tobacco. The sales man and the dealer were removed in custo- dy. There is no triumph in this for the cus- tom house officer. He had no hand in the discovery. On the contrary, there is cause ill this detection to make him feel distinctly uncomfortable, for it is stated that large number of similar boxes, indisputably packed with contraband goods, have been consigned to Fayersham in the same manner By observing how much the customs man seizes it is possible to shrewdly guess at the vast amount he misses. The persistency with which smuggling is carried on is evi- dence that the quantity of contraband goods which find their way into this country must be enormous. It is only necessary to re- member the shipping that is hourly arriving in the river and at the outports to realize the stock of smuggled stuff that in all sorts of ways is pa sed over the vessels side. If the customs man had many real eyes upon him as the peacock has painted ones he would still, we think, be deied to the ex- tent probably of fifty per cent of the con- traband importations. The utmost fussi ness, pushing, probing, skipping of pock cts, inspection of bags, rummaging of mat tresses, would not suffice. Smuggling is big conspiracy; it's members numerous and they arrive in bands. The people who oppose this confederacy comparatively few, and are fsllible withal though shrewd enough, and the wonder really is not that the customs officers should not seize more, but that they should seize 30 much.